Thai Peanut Chicken {5-Ways}

Thai Peanut Chicken.  BE WELL friends take note.

We are always looking for healthy, flavorful and most importantly…..unique lunch ideas.  I think I’ve come up with a good one here, er I mean a good FIVE!!  Take a look.

1. Thai Peanut Chicken Pita Pocket
2. Thai Peanut Chicken Rice/Grain Bowl
3. Thai Peanut Chicken Noodle Bowl
4. Thai Peanut Chicken Soup
5. Thai Peanut Chicken Salad

It all begins with a nice plump Whole Roasted Chicken.  We generally buy the biggest ones we can find (6-7 lbs.)  We enjoy a delicious roast chicken dinner on the first night and then pick it clean for the glorious leftover cooked chicken to be eaten for the next couple of days.  No leftover cooked chicken?  Don’t let that stop you.  A rotisserie chicken works great for Thai Peanut Chicken.

This guy was especially lovely as we tried a new ‘salted’ method to get some nice crispy skin.  Look at all those juices which we turned into some good rich Homemade Chicken Broth.

The base for this great dish(es) is a big bowl of fresh raw veggies with a variety of colors and crunch.  I used cabbage, carrots, kale, radish, broccoli, scallions, fresh cilantro, and a handful of peanuts.  Use your favorites, this is a great chance to work through items in that veggie crisper.  I then added some shredded cooked chicken and tossed it in a little peanut sauce.  You can make your own sauce, I have a recipe here or you can use store bought (we love House of Tsang Bangkok Padang Peanut Sauce).

Tip:  To make your sauce or dressing go farther, drizzle on half of what you think you need then give your salad a shake.  That’s right, cover your bowl and shake, shake, shake.  You’ll be surprised just how far a little sauce can go.

Tip:  Make up a big batch of the chopped veggie mixture at the beginning of the week.  Then add dressing when you’re ready to turn it into a salad or stuff it in a pita pocket.  There will be no excuse not to get your 5 servings of fruits and veggies in that day.

Voila!  Here’s a delicious Salad right out of the bowl or stuff this salad into a Pita Pocket for a portable lunch option.

Tip:  We love Joseph’s brand Flax, Oat Bran & Whole Wheat Pita Bread.  Only 50 calories per and just 1 WW Pts+.

For the Bowls simple toss the veggie/chicken mixture with cooked Asian noodles, rice, or your favorite grains like quinoa or farro.  You may want to add additional peanut sauce for the bowls.  I love a cold noodle bowl, but you could quickly stir fry the veggies for a hot bowl of love.

And for the Soup, bring that chicken broth to a boil, then add in all but the peanuts, scallions and fresh cilantro.  Heat through, then serve in big bowls with peanuts, scallions and cilantro sprinkled on top.

I will be cooking a chicken on Sunday night so that when our office Be Well Challenge kicks off on Monday I’ll have some great Healthy Choices for lunch next week.  Loving the Thai Peanut Chicken {5-Ways}.

Other recipes you might enjoy:

Roasted Golden Beet Hummus Meatball Beef & Broccoli Mu Shu Chicken Cabbage Rolls